Browsing by Author "Balyejjusa, Moses Senkosi"

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    Assessment of Somali refugees’ wellbeing: the centrality of human needs.
    (2015-09) Balyejjusa, Moses Senkosi
    There is a substantial body of literature on psychological wellbeing of refugees in psychology, especially in relation to refugee acculturation. However, very little research has been carried out on refugee wellbeing by assessing refugees’ objective conditions of living. This paper seeks to bridge this gap by evaluating the satisfaction of the human needs of Somali refugees in Kampala, Uganda. Drawing on data from thirty six individual in-depth interviews and seven focus group discussions with seventy Somali refugee and twenty two Ugandan study participants living in Kisenyi slum, the paper shows that the study participants assessed the satisfaction of seven objective elements. They include peace and security, housing, education, health care, financial security, food and employment. These objective elements can be seen to represent human needs when analysed in relation to Len Doyal and Ian Gough’s (1991) theory of human need formulation. Specifically the objective elements are similar in some respect to Doyal and Gough’s identified intermediate needs of physical security, nutritional food and safe water, economic security, protective housing, appropriate education, appropriate health care and a non-hazardous work environment. Doyal and Gough (1991) maintain that their identified needs equate to functionings such as being nourished, healthy, literate and numerate (educated), sheltered, clothed, etc under the capability approach. The study participants assessed some Somali refugees as having adequate satisfaction of these objective elements while others as having inadequate satisfaction. Further, the Ugandan study participants evaluated the satisfaction of the elements more positively while the Somali refugee participants evaluated the satisfaction more negatively. In this paper I argue that this is the case because of the differences in Somali refugees’ financial resources and social support, a comparison of Somali refugees’ life situation in Kampala vis-à-vis their previous life situation in Somalia, a comparison of Ugandans’ life situation with Somali refugees’ life situation, and the non-discriminatory and accepting host environment. Refugees with more financial resources and stronger social support have their human needs such as housing, food, health care, education, employment and financial security adequately satisfied while refugees with fewer financial resources and weak social support have their needs inadequately satisfied. The financial resources are mainly from the small and medium scale business enterprises owned by Somali refugees in Kisenyi while the social support is mainly in form of financial remittances from relatives and friends from industrialised or developed countries. In addition to financial resources and mutual social support, the non-discriminatory and accepting attitudes and behaviours of Ugandans resulted in the satisfaction of the human needs of housing, education, peace and security, and employment of this category of Somali refugees. The positive evaluation of the satisfaction of Somali refugees’ needs of housing, education, food and financial security by Ugandans is because most Ugandans living in Kisenyi are in a poorer financial position than Somali refugees. On the other hand, Somali refugees’ negative evaluation of the satisfaction of their needs is due to Somali refugees comparing their better conditions of living in Somalia before the outbreak of the civil war with their conditions of living in Kisenyi. The findings of the study suggest that financial resources and a non-discriminatory and accepting host environment are instrumentally important in promoting Somali refugees’ wellbeing since they guarantee adequate satisfaction of the human needs of Somali refugees. I therefore conclude by noting that having means to financial resources and a non-discriminatory and accepting host environment are fundamental in promoting and guaranteeing refugees’ wellbeing in general and Somali refugees in particular.
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    Meanings and Understandings of Wellbeing: An Exploration of Somali Refugees’ Conceptions of Human Wellbeing
    (2015) Balyejjusa, Moses Senkosi
    Although there is a substantial body of literature on human wellbeing, there is no universally agreed-upon meaning and understanding of the concept. This article explores the meanings and understandings which Somali refugees in Kampala, Uganda attach to the concept. Drawing on 14 in-depth individual interviews and seven focus group discussions with 70 Somali refugee study participants in Kisenyi, I argue that wellbeing is mainly understood in terms of having access to objective elements that result in having a good or comfortable life. Objective elements can be seen to represent human needs with respect to Doyal and Gough’s theory of human need. These objective elements were discussed as prerequisites for having a good life. They include peace and security, health, education, employment and housing. Adequate access to these objective elements is perceived as fundamentally important in promoting and guaranteeing human wellbeing.
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    Somali Refugees’ Wellbeing: The Role of Socio-Culturally Mediated Agency
    (Africa Journals Online, 2019) Balyejjusa, Moses Senkosi
    Although there is substantial research on refugees and their wellbeing, there is limited research that examines the role of refugees‘ agency in their lives. Using Doyal and Gough‘s (1991) theory of human need, the study analyses Somali refugees‘ wellbeing by examining the satisfaction of their human needs. Drawing on data from 70 Somali refugees in Kisenyi, Kampala, the study found that Somali refugees exercised their socio-culturally mediated agency to promote their wellbeing. The socio-culturally mediated agency was demonstrated in form of an individual‘s/family‘s ability to start and maintain small and medium-scale business enterprises and develop social networks with the host community, fellow Somalis within Uganda and abroad. Individuals/families that engaged in either or both of the agency actions were able to adequately meet their human needs, thus promoting their wellbeing because adequate satisfaction of human needs leads to human wellbeing.
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    Uganda’s Vision 2040 and Human Needs Promotion
    (2015-10) Balyejjusa, Moses Senkosi
    In 2013 the President of Uganda Yoweri Kaguta Museveni launched Uganda’s Vision 2040, a thirty-year development master plan which has received both praise and criticism from Ugandans. Although Vision 2040 has received both praise and criticism in almost equal measure, in this article I argue that Vision 2040 does not adequately promote the satisfaction of the human needs of Ugandans, yet the satisfaction of these needs is a prerequisite for achieving genuine development. Using a human needs framework in general, and Doyal and Gough’s intermediate needs in particular, I show that the Vision’s strategies adequately promote the satisfaction of only three intermediate needs of Ugandans, partially promote the satisfaction of seven intermediate needs of Ugandans, and that there is no single strategy to promote the satisfaction of one of the intermediate needs. This is because some of the Vision strategies do not adequately tackle the current and likely future challenges and bottlenecks to the satisfaction of the human needs of Ugandans. This is mainly due to the central role placed on the private capital (sector) in Vision 2040. I argue that in order for Vision 2040 to adequately promote the satisfaction of the human needs of Ugandans, all and not just some of the needs must be adequately satisfied since human needs are interrelated and interdependent. In addition, Vision 2040 should also be in position to satisfy the human needs of all Ugandans and not just some.
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    The Wellbeing of Somali Refugees in Kampala: Perceived Satisfaction of Their Human Needs
    (Africa Journals Online, 2017) Balyejjusa, Moses Senkosi
    Although there is substantial research on the psychological wellbeing of refugees in psychology, especially in acculturation research, there is very little research assessing refugees‘ objective conditions of living. This study aims to bridge this gap by assessing the perceived satisfaction of Somali refugees‘ objective elements in Kampala, Uganda. Drawing on qualitative data from 92 Somali refugee and Ugandan participants, the paper shows that the participants assessed the perceived satisfaction of Somali refugees‘ four objective wellbeing elements (peace and security, housing, education, and employment). These objective elements can be seen to represent human needs when analysed in relation to Doyal and Gough‘s (1991) theory of human need, particularly the intermediate needs. The study participants perceived most Somali refugees as having adequate satisfaction to these objective elements. In this paper, I argue that this is the case because of the non-discriminatory and accepting host environment, Somali refugees‘ financial resources and the culture of social support. These are instrumentally important in promoting Somali refugees‘ wellbeing since they guarantee adequate satisfaction of the human needs of Somali refugees.